Bar
by Cha-Cha-Cheesecake
Summary: Ed and Dylan go to a bar as friends and there they make some of the biggest decisions they've ever had to face that could affect their entire future. Ed/OC Nico/Ketty. *ONESHOT*


**A/N: After watching The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer yesterday (I mentioned it in my other fic, Leadership is But a Privilege) this idea came to mind and I created this random oneshot featuring everyone's favourite couple (well, mine, at least)… Dylan Fox and Ed O'Brien! Woo-hoo!**

**I'm not telling if this fic is romantic or not ;) You guys will have to read to find out XD It's supposed to be humorous but I'm not sure if that's how it turned out… But you guys can be the judge of that!**

**Bar**

"Hey, Dylan, are you heading out already?" Tessa Harris asked her flatmate, grinning. Dylan nodded, tying up her long red hair into a ponytail.

"Yup. I'm going to meet Ed at the bar. I felt like going for a drink because I can't _stand_ being around Nico and Ketty nowadays. Did you _know_ they're engaged?"

"Yes, I do. I was_ there _when Nico proposed," Tessa reminded her. Dylan rolled her eyes.

"I just think it's way too soon! I mean, _come on_! Nico only turned eighteen two _weeks _ago!"

"It's not your place to be the agony aunt," Tessa grinned. Dylan sighed.

"You have it _easy_, Tessa. You don't have a boyfriend like Nico, who likes to rush things. You and Ed are taking it slow."

"Enough about me and Ed. This is about you being _way _too protective over them. You're not their mum. You don't have to look out for them."

"Whatever. Look, Tessa, I gotta go. Ed won't wait much longer. Are you _sure_ you don't wanna go with us?" Dylan asked. Tessa nodded softly.

"Yeah. I need my space sometimes, and Ed can get clingy at the best of times. I need to be by myself a bit. But you guys can go without me," she said quickly, patting Dylan on the shoulder. Dylan frowned.

"Well, if you're sure…"

"Yeah, I'm _totally _sure!" She steered Dylan through the door. "Maybe you should try and see if you can meet a nice guy at the bar, Dyl. Since you broke it off with Harry three years ago, you haven't gotten back together with anyone yet. When are you going to sit down and get to _know_ someone?"

"When I can find someone who won't be threatened by how fierce I come off," she said, sticking her chin out indignantly. "I know that I'm prickly and not too good talking to people. But they have to put in a bit of effort too, you know!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Tessa teased, opening the door. "Be back by eleven. And don't get drunk. You're like some kind of _devil_ when you've got a hangover. It harshes my mood when you act like a princess." Dylan rolled her eyes.

"You're such a hippie. I mean, 'harshes your mood'? What are you, _fifty_?"

"Shut up," grinned Tessa. "Now go on, Dylan Fox, go on and enjoy yourself. I'll see you later."

"See ya," Dylan called, waving. She shut the door behind her and wandered down the steps of their apartment to where Ed was waiting in a taxi.

"I thought you'd_ never _come," Ed said. "You were taking a really long time, you know."

"Whatever. If it makes you feel better, I'll pay for the taxi if you cover the drinks. We clear?" Dylan opened the car door and strapped herself in.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. So, what were you and Tessa saying?" Ed asked. Dylan grinned.

"None of your business, dude," she said. "It could be about what we think of your shirt… or it could be about monthly cycles. You can choose whether or not to ask. You might be afraid to hear the answer though." Ed shuddered.

"I'm thinking you're right," he said.

"Good boy. Now, lemme sit in silence for a bit. I've been working my shift at my waitress job _all day_… I haven't had a moment to myself."

"Fine." Dylan rested her head against the window and sighed. Since she'd gotten that new job, she was running around like crazy.

It was a good thing she had Tessa to look out for her. Tessa Harris was her best friend. They'd met a long time ago when she first came to England, but they had only gotten really close after she broke up with Harry.

Tessa Harris was beautiful. She was blonde, like Ed, and had pretty grey eyes that Dylan constantly poured over. Like Dylan, she was eighteen years old and did the chores while Dylan did the shifts at the café she worked at in central London. Over the years, the two had become inseparable, although they had a lot of different tastes. Their opinions on Ed, mainly.

They pulled up outside the pub and Dylan fished around for a few notes to give to the taxi driver.

"Thanks," she said, handing over her money. He grinned.

"See ya around girlie," he said, before pulling out.

"_Girlie_? I'm eighteen, not _six_," she said, scowling. Ed patted her arm.

"Oh, the horror," he said dryly. "Now come on, Dylan. I'll buy us drinks. I'm having a beer. You're having…?"

"Coke," she said. "Tessa told me not to get drunk, so I figured I'd just stick to soft drinks to be on the safe side."

"Okay. Do you want anything to eat?"

"A cheeseburger would be great, thanks," she said. "I'll go grab a table."

"Okay. See you in a sec." He wandered over to the bar to grab their drinks and order for Dylan. She found them a table near the back of the bar and sat down, fishing out her phone.

She began to text Tessa.

_Hey Tess. What u doin?_

A few minutes later, she got a reply.

_Tryin 2 answer the big question._

She frowned. What the heck did _that_ mean?

"I'm back," Ed announced, handing her a glass of coke with a bendy straw in. I grabbed it and took a sip. "They said your burger would come in a few minutes."

"Great," she said. "Thanks." He smiled and sat down, holding his glass of beer like it was a life preserver.

Dylan frowned, taking another sip from her coke. Ed used to hate beer. Then one year, something just happened. Now just look at him.

"Life's a lot different now," he said out loud. "People _change_ more then stay the same.""Stop reading my mind," she snapped. "It freaks me out when you do that!" He shrugged.

"Sorry. Didn't realise I'd struck a nerve," he said, cracking a smile. "But you should be used to it by now. I mean, we've had these abilities for nearly five years. It's about time we start remembering the effect they have on people."

"Whatever." They sat in an awkward silence. At last, Dylan's burger came.

"Here you are!" A perky waitress put it down on a plate and smiled before quickly wandering over to another table.

Dylan took a bite. It was so hot she freaked out and grabbed Ed's drink instead of her own to wash it down.

"…That was my drink," Ed remarked. Dylan glared at him and slammed it down on the table, grabbing her own and took a large sip.

"Yes, I'm fine, thanks," she snarled. "Geez…"

"Oh, lighten up," he grinned. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? Now lets put all of this behind us."

"Fine." She sighed and took another sip before picking up her burger again. This time it was cool enough to start eating.

"Is it good?" Ed asked. She nodded.

"Man, I can't believe Nico and Ketty are getting married," Dylan complained, taking a furious bite out of her burger. "I mean, fine, we all saw it coming, but _come on_! We're only just legal! Aren't they rushing everything?"

"Are you jealous?" teased Ed. Dylan shot him a ferocious look.

"Don't start with that bullshit, Ed! Of course I'm not! Why would _I_ be jealous of _those _two? Independence is a _good_ thing! Which is _why_ I haven't had a boyfriend," she said quickly, glaring at Ed. "_Not_ because every guy in the bar is scared of me." He raised his eyebrows.

"Hey, I'm not saying anything of the sorts," he said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "But for what it's worth, don't you think you're taking this a little too seriously?" Dylan stared at him.

"A little too seriously? Do you hear yourself? I mean, Nico only turned eighteen last week! They're still little kids, Ed! I mean, as the oldest I'm thinking seriously for you guys! I'm like the voice of reason nowadays. Even you, Ed, have gone a little crazy ever since you became legal to do all this grown-up shit!"

"You're overreacting," Ed said breezily, picking up his glass of beer. She shook her head, frustrated.

"I'm not! I mean, remember that one night when you and Nico went out to that bar to drink together? When you guys came back, me and Ketty had to _drag_ your dead-weight bodies to your rooms using only our brute strength! And we're _girls_! We don't _have _brute strength!"

"So one night things didn't go so smoothly. But you don't get it, Dyl, Nico talked me into it. He said that I needed to man up and live dangerously. And, fair enough, I was a moron and believed him. But come on. We're not kids anymore. We're eighteen."

"That was the same excuse that Ketty and Nico used when they got engaged!" Dylan cried, throwing up her hands in exasperation and accidentally flinging her burger at the wall.

"…You dropped your burger," Ed reminded her after several awkward moments passed.

"_I know_!" she hissed, hastily picking it up before anyone noticed. She tossed it in the bin and sat back down again, face pink and her mouth set into a grim line.

"Now, like I was saying before, Dylan, we're not kids anymore. We're grown up. We don't have to worry for one another anymore."

"Age has nothing to do with how much you worry over a person," she argued. "You know, Ed, I used to think you were smart, although I'd have never admitted it back then. But you've become stupid as you grew older, and now you're as much of an asshole as Nico!" She slammed her fist on the table and glared at him. "Now, Edward Neill O'Brien, you'll listen to me, and listen to me good. YOU'RE ALL INSANE."

He looked skeptical as he stirred the coke sitting in her glass. She snatched it off him and took a long sip.

"You're saying all of this, Dylan, but wasn't it you who slept with the boy down the block for a dare the week after your eighteenth?"

Her face flushed until she was as red as her hair.

"That was different. That wasn't serious commitment, like what Nico and Ketty are about to do." Ed raised his eyebrows.

"How was it different?" he wanted to know. "I mean, what if you weren't careful enough? If luck wasn't on your side that night you could be pregnant right now. If a baby isn't commitment, I don't know what is." She frowned.

"Stop talking like you know how the female organs function. You weren't all that ace in biology, you know. And anyway, enough about me. I was originally talking about Nico and Ketty's engagement. It is happening _way_ too fast." He rolled his eyes again.

"And you're being _way_ too negative about it," he pointed out. "I mean, come on, they've been going out for years now. They know each other really well and they're happy together. Isn't that all that counts?" He stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to get another beer." He wandered over to the bar while she sat in her seat, sulking and stirring her coke listlessly. All the while she was feeling troubled.

What had happened to the responsible and serious Ed that she used to think was so dorky? His intelligent and level-headed self had suddenly been replaced by a hippie-idiot who thought that being happy was what it was all about.

As she mused over this, she noticed Ed take out his mobile. He was probably calling Nico to tell him all the things she'd been saying so him and Ketty could sit her down and give her a lecture.

In her opinion, there were plenty of other things to worry about in life! What if they couldn't hold down proper jobs because they were so in love they turned dopey? And if they ever had children and the stress piled on, what if they stopped being in love, got a divorce and left the children feeling sad and from a broken home? They needed to consider other factors of marriage other then happiness.

By the time Ed returned she was ready to rant on to him again, but as he sat down his face was ashen. She dropped her scowl immediately.

"What's wrong?" she asked, watching him. He sighed.

"Tessa rejected me," he said miserably. Dylan blinked.

"You _proposed_?" she cried incredulously, her face filled with horror. "But Ed! I mean, come _on_! You guys have only been together for how long?"

"Six months," he mumbled. She slapped her forehead.

"Oh my god," she groaned. "Why the hell did you take that step? I mean, you've seen how much I've been spazzing over Nico and Ketty getting together, and they've been going out for four years now! You haven't even been dating a year, I mean, of course she would reject you! Girls like Tessa don't like guys that wanna rush things! They need a chance to settle down and really spend more time with you then six months!" He bent his head.

"I was an idiot, I know. It's just… Well, I really liked her. And… And, well, I haven't been in love with anyone else but her. Not since… Not since Luz died." He hid his face in his hands. "…I've been an idiot, haven't I?"

"Well no freakin' duh," Dylan snapped. "Look, I see where you were coming from, Ed, but you've blown it with Tessa now. I've known her for _years_, and all those times I slept over at her place since last year before I started rooming with her, she'd go on and on to me about how much she liked you. She'd chatter to me for _hours_ about how smart and cool she thought you were, and I had to endure the whole night being reminded about all the things I find annoying about you."

He watched in stunned silence as she slurped loudly on her coke.

"But she once said to me, when you were going out, that she wanted to spend ages as your _girlfriend_. Not your wife, or fiancée, or the mother to your children, just your girlfriend. Because she was happy with how things were. She liked being able to go on dates and hold your hand and eat out at McDonalds with you, without having to worry about responsibility, because she knew at the end of the day if she was tired she could just go back to her own apartment and not think twice about a thing."

He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.

"But now you've gone and _blown it_, Ed! Tessa really liked you. She did. But she didn't want you to _propose_ to her! That would completely defy her laws of being a girl. Get a clue, dammit!"

"But how was I supposed to know?" he croaked at last. "How was I supposed to know she didn't want to take the next step?"

"Because the girl's _always_ the one who drops the subtle hints," Dylan said. Then she narrowed her eyes. "_And_ because I'm always _right_! _Listen_ to Dylan Fox a little, dammit! As Tessa's best friend, I think I'd know what thoughts were running through her head!"

He opened his bottle of beer and took a depressing sip.

"I've really screwed up, haven't I?" She suddenly dropped her anger and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Look, Ed. You may have screwed things up with Tessa, but there's always the thought that her very attractive and smart best friend might get her to _take you back_." He looked up, eyes filled with hope.

"You'd really help me out, Dylan?" he asked, grabbing her hand. She froze up.

"Er, _yeah_, I will, just _please_ let go of my hand," she said, hanging her head. It felt really disloyal to Tessa that he was holding her hand only minutes after they'd ended it.

"O-Oh! Right! Uh, I'm sorry," he stammered, dropping Dylan's hand quickly. His face was flushed.

"Th-This is awkward," she said, laughing. He smiled faintly, then looked her straight in the eyes.

"But seriously, Dylan… Thank you. I can't thank you _enough_ for promising what you did. I love Tessa, _so_ much. You don't know how much it means to me that you're willing to try and help us."

"Hey, just call me Dylan Fox, miracle-worker," Dylan grinned, taking a sip of her coke. "That reminds me, Ed. I've thought about what I want to do." He looked up.

"You mean, as a career?" he asked. She nodded.

"I want to carry on with my father's research. When he died, my mom was frightened people would come after her and she was killed. The reason he died was because of the Medusa Gene. If I were to continue working on it where he left off and develop it so that it didn't kill the moms, it could really help where people need it."

"Dylan…"

"I'd make sure it didn't fall into the wrong hands, of course," she said, quickly. "But I'm sure if I just kept working on it, I could develop a beta version of the gene… William Fox was my father, after all. I _have_ his DNA in me, which means I have his knowledge as an addition to _my _knowledge, somewhere in the back of my mind. I'm sure I can work something out." She had a dreamy look on my face. "Dad left the Medusa Gene with me for a reason. He _wanted_ me to work on it… I'm sure of it."

"And I'll help you," Ed said suddenly. She looked up dumbly.

"Huh?"

"I don't know how much help I'll be with working on the Medusa Gene… But I'll help in any way I can. Even if I'm just an intern, I still want to work on it with you."

"You… You wanna work on the Medusa Gene?" Dylan asked, surprised. "But didn't you just get a scholarship to study at Oxford University in July?"

"Well, _yeah_… I'm not giving up on University. I'm studying Biology anyway, and I might need those qualifications just to work on the Medusa Gene with you… You probably won't need them. You have a right to the Medusa Gene, because your dad created it. But it'll be harder for me. So I'll have to work for it." She stared. She'd never seen such determination and excitement in his eyes before.

"But… But _why_?" she asked, still uncertain of whether she was really hearing all of this. "Why are you so keen on helping me?" He smiled.

"Dylan… You can't work so hard by yourself. It'll be a lot of work developing the gene, because it's _already_ evolutionary. You need people to help you research, and develop it. I want to be one of those people."

"But you've been training to be a doctor," she cried. "Why are you going to give up on that dream for _me_?" He shook his head, still smiling.

"I'm not. I'm still going to be a doctor. But I'm going to be a researcher too, just like you. And I'll implant the genes too. I've been taught how to on courses I've been taking all over summer. I've talked to Nico and Ketty about it too."

"You've talked to Nico and Ketty without consulting _me_ first?" she demanded, cracking a smile. "_I'm_ the one you'll be working with."

"Likewise." He grinned. "Ketty and Nico said that when the time comes, they'll be willing to be guinea-pigs."

She gasped. "You mean…?"

"Yep. If and when Ketty gets pregnant, they want us to implant a gene into their baby. They believe in us, Dylan. _You_. They believe you can develop a gene that won't affect Ketty. They believe that you can fix the gene up."

"But why are they willing to sacrifice so much?" Dylan asked, lip trembling. "What if I _can't_ fix it up? What if Ketty gets the cancer from the Medusa Gene and _dies_?"

"Dylan, we've always been on your side," he said gently. "Nico and Ketty trust you with their lives. I trust you, too. We've been in the Medusa Project since before we were even born. We were fated to work together by our parents and their decisions. The Medusa Gene concerns all of us, that's how we view it. So we're willing to help you work on it."

"It's funny… Tessa will be disappointed that everyone will be working on the Medusa Gene while she'll be working in Waterstones," Dylan giggled. "Ahh, but you don't know how _grateful_ I am right now. I feel giddy."

"Giddy, huh?" Ed grinned. "That was an emotion the old Dylan Fox _never_ knew."

"Well, you said it yourself, Ed," Dylan said, returning his smile.

"Said what?" Then he groaned. "Oh, god, you're not going to do one of those cliché catchphrases, are you? Talk about an awkward end to the evening."

"Shut up," she replied. "And lemme finish." He sighed.

"Fine. What did I say?"

She tilted back in her seat, feeling the air vent blow down on her hair. It was cool and soothing, making her feel even more blissful.

"People change more then they stay the same."

**XXX**

**A/N: Ahh, that was really long, wasn't it? =3= But oh well. I'm glad with how it turned out, kyaa x3 I hope one day I can write something else a bit like this. Or maybe a future fic? That'd be fun ^_^**

**Also~ Tessa Harris is my OC, but this is the first time she's appeared in one of my fics. Maybe I should give her a story? I'm not sure =w=**


End file.
